Data distribution server, terminal, and data distribution system

ABSTRACT

A data delivery server ( 18 ) includes a download server ( 24 ), and a mobile telephone ( 12 ) is connected to the download server ( 24 ) via an Internet ( 20 ), a mobile telephone network ( 16 ), and a radio base station ( 14 ). The mobile telephone ( 12 ) is capable of downloading desired music data from the data delivery server ( 18 ). More specifically, a menu server ( 22 ) determines one access point where traffic is not congested based on a connection situation to the access point of the download server ( 24 ), and transmits to the mobile telephone ( 12 ) download information including a content ID which recognizes a determined access point and the desired music data. Therefore, the mobile telephone ( 12 ) is capable of downloading the music data by connecting it to the download server ( 24 ) from the access point where traffic is not congested based on the download information. Thus, a required time for downloading cannot be longer than necessary.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to a data delivery server, aterminal, and a data delivery system using the same. More specifically,the present invention relates to a data delivery server, a terminal, anda data delivery system using the same, which transmits content data suchas music data, image data and so on to a terminal via a telephonenetwork from a download server, for example.

PRIOR ART

[0002] Such a kind of a conventional data delivery terminal is acomputer such as a personal computer (PC), and connects it to anInternet via a telephone line, for example and accesses a predeterminedhomepage so as to download content data such as music data, image dataand so on.

[0003] However, in this prior art, in a case that there is a rush ofaccesses to the predetermined homepage, that is, traffic is congested,when downloading the desired content data, it took an excessive amountof time. Thus, its telephone charge was costly. In addition, although itwas possible to download the desired content data by re-connecting tothe predetermined homepage from a different access point (URL, forexample) when the traffic is thus congested, it was bothersome tooperate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] Therefore, it is a primary object of the present invention toprovide a data delivery server, a communication terminal, and a datadelivery system using the same, capable of downloading withoutunnecessary operations and also restraining a telephone charge.

[0005] A data delivery server according to the present inventioncomprises: a download server which transmits content data to acommunication terminal via a telephone network; at least two accesspoints for accessing the download server; a connection situationdetecting means which detects a connection situation of the accesspoints; and a first selecting means which selects one access point wheretraffic is not congested based on a detection result by the connectionsituation detecting means.

[0006] A data delivery server according to the present inventionincludes the download server and transmits information (downloadinformation) for downloading content data and the content data to thecommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS (personalhandy-phone system), or a personal computer or the like from thedownload server via a telephone network such as a mobile telephonenetwork, a PHS network, and so on. The download server has at least twoaccess points, and the connection situation detecting means detects anaccess condition (connection situation) to each of the access points,and the first selecting means selects a single access point that trafficis not congested on the basis of the connection situation. Therefore,the connecting information to the access point, that is, the downloadinformation including a telephone number, a URL, and so on, for example,is transmitted to the communication terminal, allowing the communicationterminal to access the download server via the access point where atraffic is not congested. Thus, a communicating time for downloading thecontent data is not to be extended by the traffic congestion.

[0007] According to the present invention, the access point wheretraffic is not congested is selected so that it is possible to execute adownload by averting the traffic congestion without an unnecessary oradditional operation. Thus, it is possible to restrain a telephonecharge concerning the download.

[0008] In an aspect of the present invention, a holding means holds acandidate of access points corresponding to a calling location (sendingor dispatching place) of the communication terminal, which allows asecond selecting means to select the candidate of at least two accesspoints in accordance with the calling location of the communicationterminal detected by a calling location detecting means. Morespecifically, in a case that the calling location of the communicationterminal is Osaka, a candidate of access points corresponding to Osakaor an area in a relatively near distance (Kyoto, Shiga, Nara, Hyogo, andso on) is selected. The first selecting means selects one access pointout of the candidate of access points selected by the second selectingmeans so that an access point in an area where a communication distancebecomes longer such as Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kyushu, and so on is notselected.

[0009] In another aspect of the present invention, at least two downloadservers are provided, and a third selecting means selects one downloadserver from the at least two download servers, and therefore, the secondselecting means is capable of selecting a candidate of at least twoaccess points to the one download server selected by the third selectingmeans according to the calling location of the communication terminal ifrespective candidates of at least two access points corresponding to therespective download servers and for accessing the respective downloadservers are held in the holding means.

[0010] In a certain embodiment of the present invention, the downloadservers are provided in such a manner as to cover different areas(prefecture, for example) so that the third selecting means is capableof selecting one download server based on the calling location of thecommunication terminal. Therefore, it is possible to shorten thetelephone communication distance.

[0011] In another embodiment of the present invention, download serversare provided in such a manner as to respectively correspond to differentcontent data, and therefore, it is possible to select one downloadserver based on the content data to be transmitted to the communicationterminal.

[0012] Another invention is a data delivery server, comprising: adownload server which transmits to a communication terminal via atelephone network at least one of encrypted content data and licenseinformation necessary for reproducing the encrypted content data; atleast two access points for accessing the download server; a connectionsituation detecting means which detects connection situations to theaccess points; and a first selecting means which selects one accesspoint that a traffic is not congested based on a detection result of theconnection situation detecting means.

[0013] The data delivery server according to this invention includes thedownload server, and at least one of the encrypted content data (ciphercontent data) and the license information necessary for reproducing theencrypted content data is transmitted from the download server to thecommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS or a personalcomputer or the like via the telephone network such as a mobiletelephone network, a PHS network, and so on. That is, in transmittingthe encrypted content data and the license information, thecommunication terminal is capable of obtaining them by downloading theboth. In addition, it is also possible to separately transmit theencrypted content data and the license information. Furthermore, thecommunication terminal can download only the license information fromthe data delivery server while obtaining the encrypted content data fromanother data deliver server or an appendix of a magazine such as a CD orthe like. Furthermore, the download server has the at least two accesspoints, and the connection situation detecting means detects connectionsituations to the access points, and the first selecting means selectsone access point where a traffic is not congested from the connectionsituations. Therefore, if the download information including theconnection information to this access point, such as a telephone number,a URL, and so on is transmitted to the communication terminal, it ispossible for the communication terminal to access the download servervia the access point where a traffic is not congested. Thus, a requiredtime for downloading the encrypted content data and the licenseinformation is not extended due to the traffic congestion.

[0014] According to the present invention, the access point where atraffic is not congested is selected, thus possible to executedownloading by averting the traffic congestion without an unnecessary oradditional operation. Accordingly, it is possible to restrain atelephone charge concerning the download.

[0015] In a certain aspect of the present invention, a holding meansholds candidates of access points corresponding to a calling location(calling place) of the communication terminal, allowing a secondselecting means to select a candidate of at least two access pointscorresponding to the calling location of the communication terminaldetected by a calling location detecting means. More specifically, in acase that the calling location of the communication terminal is Osaka,candidates of access points corresponding to Osaka and an area in arelatively near distance (Kyoto, Shiga, Nara, Hyogo, and so on) areselected. The first selecting means selects one access point out of thecandidates of access points selected by the second selecting means, andthus, an access point in an area where a telephone communicationdistance becomes longer such as Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kyushu, and so on isnot selected.

[0016] In another aspect of the present invention, at least two downloadservers are provided, and a third selecting means selects one downloadserver from the at least two download servers. Therefore, if candidatesof the at least two access points corresponding to the respectivedownload servers and for accessing the respective download servers areheld in the holding means, the second selecting means is capable ofselecting the candidates of the at least two access points to the onedownload server selected by the third selecting means according to thecalling location of the communication terminal.

[0017] In a certain embodiment of the present invention, the downloadserver is provided in such a manner as to cover different areas(prefecture, for example), allowing the third selecting means to selectone download server based on the calling location of the communicationterminal. Therefore, it is possible to shorten the telephonecommunication distance.

[0018] In another embodiment of the present invention, the downloadserver is provided in such a manner as to respectively correspond todifferent content data so that it is also possible to select onedownload server based on the content data to be transmitted to thecommunication terminal.

[0019] A communication terminal according to another invention accessesa download server included in a data delivery server so as to receiveand store content data, and comprises: an obtaining means which obtainsfrom the data delivery server download information including at leastdata information showing content data and access point informationshowing an access point to the download server; an establishing meanswhich establishes a connection between the download server based on theaccess point information included in the download information which isobtained by the obtaining means; a transmitting means which transmits tothe download server the data information included in the downloadinformation when connected to the download server; and a storing meanswhich stores the content data transmitted from the download server.

[0020] The communication terminal according to this invention is acommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS or a personalcomputer, and capable of receiving and storing the content datatransmitted from the download server by connecting to the downloadserver included in the data delivery server. The communication terminalaccesses the data delivery server so as to obtain from this datadelivery server the download information which includes at least thedata information showing the content data to be downloaded and theaccess point information showing an access point to the download server.The communication terminal establishes a connection between the downloadserver based on the access point information included in the downloadinformation. More specifically, the communication terminal connectsitself to the download server from the access point indicated by theaccess point information. The access point is an access point that isselected by the data delivery server and that a traffic is notcongested, for example. The communication terminal transmits to thedownload server the data information included in the downloadinformation when connected to the download server. In response thereto,the download server transmits to the communication terminal the contentdata shown by the data information. The content data thus transmitted isreceived by the communication terminal, and stored in the storing means.

[0021] According to the present invention, it is possible to connect thecommunication terminal to the download server from the access pointwhere a traffic is not congested, thus possible to download the contentdata in a short period of time. That is, a telephone charge can berestrained.

[0022] A communication terminal according to still another invention isconnected to any one of a plurality of download servers included in adata delivery server so as to receive and store content data, andcomprises: an obtaining means which obtains download informationincluding at least data information showing content data to bedownloaded and access point information which shows an access point toone download server selected by the data delivery server; anestablishing means which establishes a connection between one downloadserver based on the access point information included in the downloadinformation obtained by the obtaining means; a transmitting means whichtransmits to the one download server the data information included inthe download information when connected to one download server; and astoring means which stores the content data transmitted from the onedownload server.

[0023] The communication terminal according to this invention is acommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS or a personalcomputer, and capable of receiving and storing the content datatransmitted from the download server by connecting itself to any one ofa plurality of download servers included in the data delivery server.The communication terminal accesses the data delivery server so as toobtain from the data delivery server the download information whichincludes at least the data information showing content data to bedownloaded and the access point information showing an access point tothe one download server selected by the data delivery server. Thecommunication terminal establishes the connection between thecommunication terminal and one selected download server based on theaccess point information included in the download information. Morespecifically, the communication terminal connects itself to the downloadserver from the access point indicated by the access point information.The access point is an access point that is selected by the datadelivery server and that a traffic is not congested, for example. It isnoted that the one download server is selected based on a callinglocation of the communication terminal, the content data to bedownloaded or the like, for example. The communication terminaltransmits to the download server the data information included in thedownload information when connected to the download server. In responsethereto, the download server transmits to the communication terminal thecontent data shown by the data information. The content data thustransmitted is received by the communication terminal, and stored in thestoring means.

[0024] According to the present invention, it is possible to connect tothe download server from the access point where the traffic is notcongested, thus possible to download the content data in a short periodof time. That is, a telephone charge can be restrained.

[0025] Another invention is a communication terminal which is connectedto a download server included in a data delivery server so as to receivecontent data and stores the content data into a connected recordingmedium and comprises: an obtaining means which obtains from the datadelivery server download information including at least data informationshowing content data and access point information showing an accesspoint to the download server; an establishing means which establishes aconnection between the download server based on the access pointinformation included in the download information obtained by theobtaining means; a transmitting means which transmits to the downloadserver the data information included in the download information whenconnected to the download server; a connecting means which connects tothe recording medium so as to perform at least transmitting andreceiving of the content data; and a storage controlling means whichstores into the recording medium connected by the connecting means thecontent data transmitted from the download server.

[0026] The communication terminal according to this invention is acommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS or a personalcomputer, and capable of receiving and storing the content datatransmitted from the download server into an external recording mediumsuch as a memory card, a memory stick or a hard disk drive or the likeby connecting itself to the download server included in the datadelivery server. The communication terminal accesses the data deliveryserver, and obtains from the data delivery server download informationincluding at least the data information showing the content data to bedownloaded and the access point information showing the access point tothe download server. The communication terminal establishes a connectionbetween the communication terminal and the download server based on theaccess point information included in the download information. Morespecifically, the communication terminal connects itself to the downloadserver from the access point indicated by the access point information.The access point is an access point that is selected by the datadelivery server and that a traffic is not congested, for example. Thecommunication terminal transmits to the download server the datainformation included in the download information when connected to thedownload server. In response thereto, the download server transmits tothe communication terminal the content data shown in the datainformation. The content data thus transmitted is received by thecommunication terminal, and stored by the storage controlling means inan external recording medium connected by the connecting means whichperforms at least transmitting and receiving of the content data.

[0027] According to the present invention, it is possible to connect thecommunication terminal to the download server from the access point thata traffic is not congested, thus possible to download the content datain a short period of time. That is, a telephone charge can berestrained.

[0028] Another is a communication terminal connected to any one of aplurality of download servers included in a data delivery server so asto receive content data and stores the content data into a connectedrecording medium, comprising: an obtaining means which obtains downloadinformation including at least data information showing content data tobe downloaded and access point information which shows an access pointto one download server selected by the data delivery server; anestablishing means which establishes a connection between one downloadserver based on the access point information included in the downloadinformation obtained by the obtaining means; a transmitting means whichtransmits to the one download server the data information included inthe download information when connected to the one download server; anda connecting means which at least performs transmitting and receiving ofthe content data by connecting to the recording medium; and a storagecontrolling means which stores into the recording medium connected bythe connecting means the content data transmitted from the one downloadserver.

[0029] The communication terminal according to this invention is acommunication terminal such as a mobile telephone, a PHS or a personalcomputer, and capable of receiving and storing the content datatransmitted from the download server by connecting itself to any one ofthe plurality of download servers included in the data delivery server.The communication terminal accesses the data delivery server so as toobtain from this data delivery server the download information whichincludes at least the data information showing the content data to bedownloaded and the access point information showing the access point tothe one download server selected by the data delivery server. Thecommunication terminal establishes a connection between thecommunication terminal and the one selected download server based on theaccess point information included in the download information. Morespecifically, the communication terminal connects itself to the downloadserver from the access point indicated by the access point information.The access point is an access point that is selected by the datadelivery server and that a traffic is not congested, for example. It isnoted that the one download server is selected based on a callinglocation of the communication terminal, the content data to bedownloaded or the like, for example. The communication terminaltransmits to the download server the data information included in thedownload information when connected to the download server. In responsethereto, the download server transmits to the communication terminal thecontent data shown by the data information. The content data thustransmitted is received by the communication terminal, and stored by thestorage controlling means in the recording medium connected to thecommunication terminal by the connecting means which performs leastperforms transmitting and receiving of the content data.

[0030] According to the present invention, it is possible to connect thecommunication terminal to the download server from the access pointwhere a traffic is not congested, thus possible to download the contentdata in a short period of time. That is, a telephone charge can berestrained.

[0031] A data delivery system according to still another invention,comprises: a data delivery server including a download server; and astoring means which stores content data transmitted from the downloadserver, wherein the data delivery server includes at least two accesspoints for accessing the download server, a connection situationdetecting means which detects connection situations of the accesspoints, and a first selecting means which selects one access point wherea traffic is not congested based on a detection result of the connectionsituation detecting means.

[0032] The data delivery system according to this invention is providedwith the data delivery server and a communication terminal such as amobile telephone, a PHS, a personal computer, and so on. The datadelivery server includes the download server, and from this downloadserver, information (download information) for downloading the contentdata and the content data are transmitted to the communication terminalsuch as a mobile telephone, a PHS, a personal computer, and so on via amobile telephone network, a PHS network or the like. The downloadinformation and the content data thus transmitted are stored in astoring means of the communication terminal. The download serverincludes at least two access points, and the connection situationdetecting means detects the access situations (connection situations) tothe access points, and the first selecting means selects one accesspoint where a traffic is not congested based on the detection result ofthe connection situations. Therefore, the connection information to theaccess point, that is, the download information including a telephonenumber, a URL, and so on is transmitted to the communication terminal,thus enabling the communication terminal to access the download servervia the access point where that a traffic is not congested. Accordingly,a telephone communication time during the download of the content datais not extended by the traffic congestion.

[0033] According to the present invention, the access point where atraffic is not congested is selected so that it is possible to carry outthe download by averting the traffic congestion without an unnecessaryor additional operation. Accordingly, a telephone charge can berestrained.

[0034] In a certain aspect of the present invention, a holding meansholds candidates of access points corresponding to a calling location(calling place) of the communication terminal, allowing a secondselecting means to select the candidates of at least two access pointscorresponding to the calling location of the communication terminaldetected by a calling location detecting means. More specifically, in acase that the calling location of the communication terminal is Osaka,the candidates of access points corresponding to Osaka and an area in arelatively near distance (Kyoto, Shiga, Nara, Hyogo, and so on) areselected. The first selecting means selects one access point out of thecandidates of the access points selected by the second selecting means,and therefore, an access point in an area where a telephonecommunication distance becomes longer such as Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kyushu,and so on is not selected.

[0035] In another aspect of the present invention, at least two downloadservers are provided, and a third selecting means selects one downloadserver from the at least two download servers. If the candidate of atleast two access points corresponding to the respective download serversand for accessing the respective download servers are held in theholding means, the second selecting means is capable of selecting thecandidates of at least two access points to the one download serverselected by the third selecting means according to the calling locationof the communication terminal.

[0036] In a certain embodiment of the present invention, since thedownload servers are provided in such a manner as to cover differentareas (prefecture, for example), allowing the third selecting means toselect one download server based on the calling location of thecommunication terminal. Therefore, it is possible to shorten thetelephone communication distance.

[0037] In another embodiment of the present invention, the downloadservers are provided in such a manner as to respectively correspond todifferent content data, so that it is possible to select one downloadserver based on the content data to be transmitted to the communicationterminal.

[0038] Another invention is a data delivery server comprising: a datadelivery server including a download server; and a communicationterminal provided with a storing means which stores encrypted contentdata and license information transmitted from the download server,wherein the data delivery server includes at least two access points foraccessing the download server; a connection situation detecting meanswhich detects a connection situations to the access points; and a firstselecting means which selects one access point where a traffic is notcongested based on a detection result of the connection situationdetecting means.

[0039] The data delivery system according to this invention is providedwith the data delivery server and the communication terminal such as amobile telephone, a PHS, or a personal computer, or the like. The datadelivery server includes the download server, and from this downloadserver, at least one of encrypted content data (cipher content data) andlicense information necessary for reproducing the encrypted content dataare transmitted to the communication terminal such as a mobiletelephone, a PHS, or a personal computer, and the like via telephonenetwork such as a mobile telephone network, a PHS network or the like.That is, in a case of transmitting the encrypted content data and thelicense information, the communication terminal can obtain them bydownloading both of them. In addition, it is possible to separatelytransmit the encrypted content data and the license information.Furthermore, the communication terminal is capable of downloading thelicense information only from the data delivery server while theencrypted content data is obtained from another data delivery server oran appendix of a magazine such as a CD. The downloaded encrypted contentdata and the license information are stored in the storing means of thecommunication terminal. Also, the download server has at least twoaccess points, and the connection situation detecting means detectsconnection situations to the access points, and the first selectingmeans selects one access point where a traffic is not congested from theconnection situations. Therefore, it is possible for the communicationterminal to access the download server via the access point where atraffic is not congested if connecting information to the access point,that is, the download information including a telephone number. a URL,and so on is transmitted to the communication terminal. Accordingly, arequired time for downloading the encrypted content data and the licenseinformation is not extended as a result of the traffic congestion.

[0040] According to the present invention, the access point where atraffic is not congested is selected, and therefore, it is possible tocarry out the download by averting the traffic congestion without anunnecessary or additional operation. Accordingly, a telephone charge canbe restrained.

[0041] In a certain aspect of the present invention, a holding meansholds candidates of the access points corresponding to a callinglocation (calling place) of the communication terminal, allowing asecond selecting means to select the candidates of at least two accesspoints corresponding to the calling location of the communicationterminal detected by a calling location detecting means. Morespecifically, in a case that the calling location of the communicationterminal is Osaka, the candidates of access points corresponding toOsaka and an area in a relatively near distance (Kyoto, Shiga, Nara,Hyogo, and so on) are selected. The first selecting means selects oneaccess point out of the candidates of the access points selected by thesecond selecting means, and therefore an access point in an area where atelephone communication distance becomes longer such as Hokkaido,Tohoku, Kyushu, and so on is never selected.

[0042] In another aspect of the present invention, at least two downloadservers are provided, and a third selecting means selects one downloadserver from at least two download servers, so that if the candidates ofthe at least two access points corresponding to the respective downloadservers and for accessing the respective download servers are held inthe holding means, the second selecting means is capable of selectingthe candidates of the at least two access points to the one downloadserver selected by the third selecting means according to the callinglocation of the communication terminal.

[0043] In a certain embodiment of the present invention, the downloadservers are provided in such a manner as to cover different areas(prefecture, for example), allowing the third selecting means to selectone download server based on the calling location of the communicationterminal. Therefore, it is possible to shorten the telephonecommunication distance.

[0044] In another embodiment of the present invention, the downloadservers are provided in such a manner as to respectively correspond todifferent content data so that it is possible to select one downloadserver based on the content data transmitted to the communicationterminal.

[0045] The above described objects and other objects, features, aspectsand advantages of the present invention will become more apparent fromthe following detailed description of the present invention when takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0046]FIG. 1 is an illustrative view showing one embodiment of thepresent invention;

[0047]FIG. 2 is an illustrative view showing structure of a mobiletelephone shown in FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0048]FIG. 3 is an illustrative view showing structure of a memory cardshown in FIG. 2;

[0049]FIG. 4 is an illustrative view showing structure of a menu servershown in FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0050]FIG. 5 is an illustrative view showing structure of a downloadserver shown in FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0051]FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing one portion of processes of acontroller 36, a controller 70, a CPU 80 a, and a CPU 90 a in a case ofdownloading content data within a memory card by the mobile telephone ofFIG. 1 embodiment;

[0052]FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing another portion of the processes ofthe controller 36, the controller 70, the CPU 80 a, and the CPU 90 a ina case of downloading the content data within the memory card by themobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0053]FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing still another portion of theprocesses of the controller 36, the controller 70, the CPU 80 a, and theCPU 90 a in a case of downloading the content data within the memorycard by the mobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0054]FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing yet still another portion of theprocesses of the controller 36, the controller 70, the CPU 80 a, and theCPU 90 a in a case of downloading the content data within the memorycard by the mobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0055]FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing another portion of the processes ofthe controller 36, the controller 70, the CPU 80 a, and the CPU 90 a ina case of downloading the content data within the memory card by themobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0056]FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing still another portion of theprocesses of the controller 36, the controller 70, the CPU 80 a, and theCPU 90 a in a case of downloading the content data within the memorycard by the mobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0057]FIG. 12 is an illustrative view showing structure of areproduction circuit shown in FIG. 2 embodiment;

[0058]FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing one portion of the reproductionprocess of content data by the mobile telephone of FIG. 1 embodiment;

[0059]FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing another portion of the reproductionprocess of the content data by the mobile telephone of FIG. 1embodiment; and

[0060]FIG. 15 is an illustrative view showing another embodiment of thepresent invention.

BEST MODE FOR EMBODYING THE INVENTION

[0061] Referring to FIG. 1, a download system 10 of this embodimentincludes a mobile telephone 12, and the mobile telephone 12 is connectedto a delivery server 18 via a radio base station 14 and a mobiletelephone network 16. The delivery server 18 includes a menu server 22,a download server 24, and an authentication server 26. The menu server22 and the download server 24 are connected to be communicated with eachother, and also the download server 24 and the authentication server 26are connected to be communicated with each other. Furthermore, the menuserver 22 is connected to the mobile telephone network 16 via an accesspoint MAP, and the download server 24 is connected to the mobiletelephone network 16 via an Internet 20 and a plurality of access pointsDAP(1)˜DAP(n). It is noted that an Intranet may be provided in place ofthe Internet.

[0062] Moreover, the mobile telephone 12 can access the download server24 by dialing to any one of DAP-TEL(1)˜DAP-TEL(n) that is connectioninformation to the access points DAP(1)˜DAP(n). It is noted that n is anatural numeral of 2 or greater. It is also noted that in FIG. 1,respective access points are indicated by circles (◯), and only thenumbers ((1)˜(n)) assigned on its upper left are shown. Furthermore, theaccess points DAP(1)-DAP(n) are provided area by area, that is,prefecture by prefecture, for example, and the connection informationDAP-TEL(1)˜DAP-TEL(n) for respectively connecting thereto are atelephone number or a URL.

[0063] Referring to FIG. 2, the mobile telephone 12 includes an antenna30, and the antenna 30 is connected to a transceiver circuit 32. Thetransceiver circuit 32 is connected to a controller 36 via an internalbus 34 (hereinafter briefly referred to as “bus”). The controller 36carries out a called side process in response to a calling of acommunicating partner. That is, the controller 36 controls a soundprocessing circuit 50 so as to output from a speaker 54 an incoming calltone or an incoming call melody. A user recognizes “an incoming call(call)” by the incoming call tone or the incoming call melody, andinputs an incoming-call operation by using an operation panel 44.Therefore, a connection state is established, allowing the controller 36to carry out a telephone communication process. That is, an audio signalof the communicating partner is received by the antenna 30, fetched intothe controller 36 via the transceiver circuit 32, and then output fromthe speaker 54 via the bus 34 and the sound processing circuit 50. Onthe other hand, an audio signal or speech signal of the user is inputfrom a microphone 52, fetched into the controller 36 via the soundprocessing circuit 50 and the bus 34, and then transmitted from theantenna 30 via the bus 34 and the transceiver circuit 32.

[0064] In addition, the user can input a telephone number of a desiredcommunicating partner using the operation panel 44. When the user inputsthe telephone number, the controller 36 controls a driver 38 in responsethereto, and displays the telephone number on a display 40.Subsequently, if the user instructs a calling using the operation panel44, the controller 36 carries out a calling side process. Then, when aconnection state is established, the controller 36 carries out anabove-described telephone communication process.

[0065] The mobile telephone 12 also includes a timer 42, and thecontroller 36 controls the driver 38 based on time information output bythe timer 42 so as to display on the display 40 a calendar (month anddate), time, and so on.

[0066] Furthermore, the mobile telephone 12 includes a reproductioncircuit 46 and an interface 56, and the reproduction circuit 46 and theinterface 56 are connected to the controller 36 via the bus 34. Aterminal 60 is connected to the reproduction circuit 46, and a headphone24 is connected to the terminal 60 as shown in FIG. 1. In addition, theinterface 56 is connected to a memory card 58 attachable to anddetachable from a telephone main body. Therefore, if the user instructsa reproduction using the operation panel 44, the controller 36 carriesout a reproduction process in response thereto. That is, music datastored in the memory card 58 is read out, and the reproduction circuit46 reproduces this data to be output to the headphone 24 via theterminal 60.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 3, the memory card 58 includes a controller 70,and the controller 70 is connected to a memory 74, a license memory 76,and a key memory 78 via a bus 72. The memory 74 stores data whichencrypts data (content data) protected by a copyright such as music dataor the like and data which is freely accessed. In addition, the licensememory 76 stores data necessary for protecting the copyright such as acontent decryption key or the like, that is, license data necessary forreproducing the encrypted content data. Furthermore, the key memory 78in advance stores a key necessary for a mutual authentication(encryption) process carried out in transmitting and receiving thelicense data.

[0068] Referring to FIG. 4, the menu server 22 includes a computer 80such as a personal computer, a workstation and so on, and the computer80 is connected to a communication device 82 and a HDD (hard disk drive)84. The communication device 82 can establish a communication with themobile telephone 12 via the access point MAP, the mobile telephonenetwork 16, and the radio base station 14 in accordance with aninstruction of a CPU 80 a provided on the computer 80. Furthermore, menudata for displaying in a tabulated fashion a plurality of title namesand artist names of music data and a plurality of information (downloadinformation) necessary for downloading which respectively respond to aplurality of content data (music data, in this embodiment) are stored inthe HDD 84. In addition, information related with a location of accesspoints DAP(1)-DAP(n) to the download server 24 and connectioninformation DAP-TEL(1)-DAP-TEL(n) for connecting to the download server24 via the access points DAP(1)-DAP(n) are included in the downloadinformation.

[0069] The menu data and the download information are read out from theHDD 84 in accordance with an instruction of the CPU 80 a, andtransmitted to the mobile telephone 12 via the communication device 82.That is, the mobile telephone 12 is connected to the Internet 20 via thecommunication base station 14 and the mobile telephone network 16, andaccesses the menu server 22 via this Internet 20. Therefore, a list ofthe music data, that is, the download information which corresponds tothe menu data and the desired music data is obtainable (downloadable).

[0070] Furthermore, referring to FIG. 5, the download server 24 has samestructure as the above-described menu server 22, and includes a computer90. The computer 90 is connected to a communication device 92 and a HDD(hard disk drive) 94. The communication device 92 can establish aconnection with the mobile telephone 12 via the Internet 20, the accesspoint DAP(p), the mobile telephone network 16, and the radio basestation 14 according to an instruction of a CPU 90 a provided on thecomputer 90. It is noted that 1≦p≦n is true, and p is a natural numeral.In addition, a plurality of encrypted music data and license keys eachof which correspond thereto are stored in the HDD 94, and desiredencrypted music data and license keys each of which correspond theretoare read out according to an instruction of the CPU 90 a, which aretransmitted to the mobile telephone 12 via the communication device 92.That is, mobile telephone 12 can download the desired encrypted musicdata and the license keys corresponding thereto by accessing thedownload server 24.

[0071] If the user inputs an instruction for downloading the music datausing the operation panel 44, that is, if the user inputs connectioninformation MAP-TEL to the access point MAP for accessing the menuserver 22 and carries out the calling operation, for example, aconnection is established between the mobile telephone 12 and the menuserver 22. It is noted that the connection information MAP-TEL to theaccess point MAP for accessing the menu server 22 is, in general, atelephone number, a URL or the like.

[0072] Therefore, the menu data is transmitted from the menu server 22to the mobile telephone 12. This menu data is a tabulated list on whichthe music data can be searched by singer's names or by titles such as amusic list book used for selecting a karaoke song.

[0073] It is noted that in such the menu data, its volume is so hugethat the menu data is transmitted predetermined amount by predeterminedamount on the user's instruction, and a menu is sequentially displayedon the display 40 in this embodiment.

[0074] If the user selects the desired music data from the menu usingthe operation panel 44, its selection result is transmitted to the menuserver 22. In response thereto, the menu server 22 transmits thedownload information of the selected music data to the mobile telephone12. Therefore, the mobile telephone 12 can download the desired musicdata in accordance with the download information.

[0075] In a case of downloading the music data, the access point DAP(p)is connected in accordance with the connection information DAP-TEL(p) tothe access point DAP(p) included in the download information so as toaccess the download server 24 via this access point DAP(p). However, ifa traffic is congested, it takes time to download the music data, andtherefore, a communication charge (telephone charge) becomes costly. Inorder to avert this, the menu server 24 selects the access point DAP(p)where a traffic is not congested out of the access points DAP(1)-DAP(n)for accessing the download server 24, and transmits to the mobiletelephone 12 the communication information DAP-TEL(p) to the selectedaccess point DAP(p) included in the download information.

[0076] Specific download processes are described in flowcharts shown inFIG. 6-FIG. 11. It is noted that in downloading such the music dataprotected by the copyright, it is necessary to pay a copyright fee to aproprietor of the copyright. In addition, also it is problematic if thedownloaded music data is freely traded, resulting in a lack ofprotecting the copyright. To avert such the problem or the like, a musicdata download process is described based on a process disclosed indetail in prior-applied Japanese Patent Application No. 11-345229 by theinventor et al.

[0077] Furthermore, the memory card 58 and the delivery server 18 arecommunicated with each other via the mobile telephone 12 so that therelated download process is carried out. Therefore, partitions areprovided by a dotted line so that respective processes of the controller36, the controller 70, and the CPU 80 a (or CPU 90 a) are understoodeasily in the Figures.

[0078] When the download process is started in accordance with a user'sinstruction, firstly, the controller 36 dials to the access point MAP ofthe menu server 22 in a step S1. In a succeeding step S3, the controller36 determines whether or not a connection is established. If “NO” isdetermined in the step S3, that is, if the connection is notestablished, the process returns to the step S1 in order to dial again.On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the step S3, that is, ifthe connection is established, the CPU 80 a transmits menu data of apredetermined amount in a step S5.

[0079] Therefore, the controller 36 receives menu data in a step S7,controls the driver 38 in a step S9 so as to display a menu on thedisplay 40. That is, a tabulated list sectioned by singer's names or bytitles in a hiragana (Japanese syllabary characters) alphabetical orderis shown on the display 40. Subsequently, the controller 36 determineswhether or not there is a music selected in a step S11. That is, it isdetermined whether or not a determination button (not shown) provided onthe panel 44 is depressed. If “YES” is determined in the step S11, thatis, if the determination button is depressed, the process proceeds to astep S19 shown in FIG. 7.

[0080] On the other hand, if “NO” is determined in the step S11, thatis, if the determination button is not depressed, the controller 36determines whether or not a succeeding menu display is instructed in astep S13. That is, it is determined whether or not a following pagebutton (not shown) provided on the operation panel 44 is depressed. If“NO” is determined in the step S13, that is, if the following pagebutton is not depressed, the process directly returns to the step S11.On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the step S13, that is, ifthe following page button is depressed, a transmission request of nextmenu data is transmitted in a step S15. Therefore, the CPU 80 a receivesthe transmission request of the menu data in a step S17, and the processexecutes a transmission of next menu data in response thereto.

[0081] In a step S19 shown in FIG. 7, the controller 36 determineswhether or not a purchase condition is input. That is, it is determinedwhether or not a reproduction condition (the number of reproductions orthe like) is input. If “YES” is determined in the step S19, that is, ifthe reproduction condition is input, the controller 36 transmits a musicselection result and the purchase condition in a step S21. On the otherhand, if “NO” is determined in the step S19, that is, if thereproduction condition is not input, the controller 36 transmits onlythe music selection result in a step S23.

[0082] Therefore, the CPU 80 a receives the music selection result andso on (both the music selection result and the purchase condition or theselection result only), and stores the same in a RAM 80 b. In asucceeding step S26, the CPU 80 a specifies (detects) a calling locationof the mobile telephone 12. It is noted that the calling location of themobile telephone 12 can easily be known by a mobile telephone companyfrom a location of the radio base station 14 to which the mobiletelephone 12 is connected, and the calling location of the mobiletelephone 12 can be specified (detected) by the CPU 80 a by transmittingthe information being put on a carrier.

[0083] Subsequently, the CPU 80 a obtains a content ID showing the musicdata selected in accordance with the music selection result or the likein the step S28 and a candidate list of access points in accordance withthe calling location of the mobile telephone 12 from the HDD 84, andgenerates a license request information AC which encrypts the receivedpurchase condition. The candidate list is in advance determined inaccordance with the calling location, and an access point having arelatively short distance (telephone communication distance) between thecalling location and the download server is selected to be stored in theHDD 84. In a case that the calling location (calling place) is Osaka,the candidate list of the access points of Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Shiga,and Hyogo is stored in the HDD 84 in accordance with the callinglocation, for example, and this candidate list is read out. Thus, sincethe candidate list in accordance with the calling location is in advancestored, it is possible to prevent to lengthen the telephonecommunication distance (communicating distance) more than necessary.That is, it is possible to restrain the communication charge (telephonecharge).

[0084] Next, the CPU 80 a determines one access point DAP(p) where atraffic is not congested from the candidate list obtained in the stepS29. At this time, the menu server 22 communicates with the downloadserver 24 so as to know an access condition to the download server 24.Therefore, it is possible to determine the access point DAP(P) where atraffic is not congested.

[0085] Then, the CPU 80 a obtains connection information DAP-TEL(p) tothe access point DAP(p) from the HDD 84 in a step S29. Subsequently, thecontent ID, the license request information AC, and the connectioninformation DAP-TEL(p) are transmitted in a step S31. That is, contentID//AC//DAP-TEL(P) is transmitted.

[0086] It is noted that X//Y means to transmit or receive X and Y. Thesame is hereinafter true in this embodiment.

[0087] In a succeeding step S33, the controller 36 receives the contentID//AC//DAP-TEL(P) and stores the same in the RAM 62, and then, cuts-offa circuit to the menu server 22 in a step S35.

[0088] Next, the controller 36 gives a telephone call to the downloadserver 24 of a download destination in a step S37 shown in FIG. 8. Thatis, the controller 36 dials to the access point DAP(p) in accordancewith the received connection information DAP-TEL(p). Subsequently, thecontroller 36 determines whether or not the connection is established ina step S39. If “NO” is determined in the step S39, that is, if noconnection is established, the process directly returns to the step S37so as to re-dial. On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the stepS39, that is, if the connection is established, the controller 70outputs a certified public encryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma) in a step S41.It is noted that the certified public encryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma) isstored in the key memory 78 to which the user or the like cannotdirectly access. In addition, the certified public encryption key({KPmc(1)}KPma) is a public encryption key peculiar to a class (a type,a production lot, or the like) of the memory card.

[0089] In a succeeding step S43, the controller 36 transmits the contentID, the license request information AC, and the certified publicencryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma). Herein, the content ID is a code forrecognizing the music data (content data), and uniquely determined fromthe title name and the artist's name. In addition, a reproductioncondition of the music data is determined from the license requestinformation AC.

[0090] In a succeeding step S45, the CPU 90 a receives the content ID,the license request information AC, and the certified public encryptionkey ({KPmc(1)}KPma), and decrypts the certified public encryption key({KPmc(1)}KPma) using the RAM 90 b as a work memory in a step S47 shownin FIG. 9.

[0091] It is noted that the download server 24 holds within the computer90 a public key (authentication key: KPma) for decrypting the certifiedpublic encryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma), and decrypts the certified publicencryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma) using this authentication key (KPma). Inaddition, {X}Y means information that X is encrypted to be decrypted bythe key Y. The same is hereinafter true in this embodiment.

[0092] In a step S49, the CPU 90 a determines whether or not theauthentication key (KPma) included in the certified public encryptionkey ({KPmc(1)}KPma) received as a result of the decrypting is valid. Atthis time, the CPU 90 a investigates whether or not the publicencryption key (KPmc(1)) is valid by inquiring of the authenticationserver 26 based on a certification obtained in the step S47.

[0093] If “NO” is determined in the step S49, that is, if the publicencryption key (KPmc(1)) is invalid, the process is directly ended asshown in FIG. 11. On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the stepS49, that is, the public encryption key (KPmc(1)) is valid, the CPU 90 aproduces a code (transaction ID) capable of specifying a deliverysession using the RAM 90 b. Subsequently, the CPU 90 a generates asymmetric key (Ks1) peculiar to the session using the RAM 90 b in a stepS51, and applies an encryption to be decrypted by a private decryptionkey (Kmc(1)), which is asymmetric and peculiar to a media class of amemory card 58 using the public encryption key (KPmc(1)) in a step S53.That is, {Ks1}Kmc(1) is outputted. Then, the CPU 90 a transmits thetransaction ID previously produced and the {Ks1}Kmc(1) in a step S55.

[0094] In a succeeding step S57, the controller 36 receives thetransaction ID and the {Ks1}Kmc(1), and accepts the transaction ID onlyin a step S59, which is temporarily stored in the RAM 62. It is notedthat the {Ks1}Kmc(1) is directly transmitted to the controller 70 withinthe memory card 58. Therefore, upon receipt of the {Ks1}Kmc(1), thecontroller 70 decrypts the {Ks1}Kmc(1) by the private decryption key(Kmc(1)) peculiar to the class of the memory card 58, and accepts thesymmetric key (Ks1) peculiar to the session in a step S61. It is notedthat the private decryption key (Kmc(1)) peculiar to the class of thememory card 58 is in advance stored in the key memory 78 within thememory card 58 similar to the certified public encryption key({KPmc(1)}KPma).

[0095] Next, the controller 70 generates a symmetric key (Ks2) peculiarto the session in a step S63, and encrypts the symmetric key (Ks2)peculiar to the session and the public encryption key (KPmc(1)) by thesymmetric key (Ks1), which are then output. That is, {Ks2//KPm(1)}Ks1 isgenerated, and applied to the controller 36 via the bus 34. The publicencryption key (KPmc(1)) is also in advance stored in the key memory 78within the memory card 58.

[0096] It is noted that {X//Y}Z means information that X and Y areencrypted to be decrypted by the key Z, respectively. The same ishereinafter also true in this embodiment.

[0097] Then, the controller 36 adds the transaction ID to the{Ks2//KPm(1)}Ks1 in a step S65, and transmits a{Ks2//KPm(1)}Ks1//transaction ID in a step S67.

[0098] In the CPU 90 a, the {Ks2//KPm(1)}Ks1//transaction ID is receivedin a step S69, and the {Ks2//KPm(1)}Ks1//transaction ID is decrypted bythe symmetric key (Ks1) peculiar to the session using the RAM 90 b in astep S71. Therefore, Ks2 and KPm(1) are obtained. Subsequently, the CPU90 a obtains the content decryption key (Ks) from a database stored inthe HDD 94 in accordance with the content ID previously obtained (in thestep S45) in a step S73 shown in FIG. 10. Next, the CPU 90 a produces anadministration code (license ID) capable of specifying the issue of thelicense in a step S75.

[0099] In addition, the CPU 90 a produces limit information (AC1) andcontrol information (AC2) in the reproduction circuit 46 in accordancewith the license request information AC obtained in advance (in the stepS45), and the CPU 90 a encrypts the content decryption key (Kc), thelimit information (AC1), the control information (AC2), the license ID,and the content ID by the public encryption key (KPmc(1)), which isdecryptable by the decryption key (Km(1)) peculiar to the memory card 58in a step S79. That is, {Kc//AC1//AC2//license ID//content ID}Km(1) isoutputted.

[0100] It is noted that in this embodiment, the limit information (AC1)includes permission information showing whether or not to permit areading of the content decryption key (Kc) and number of times limitinformation which limits the number of reproductions. The number oftimes limit information is two-bit data, for example, and set between“00”-“FF”. The number of times limit information being “00” means notpossible to reproduce, and in a case of “FF”, it means no limitregarding the number of reproduction times. Furthermore, the number ofreproduction times is limited between “01”-“FE”. In addition, thecontrol information (AC2) is information including a reproduction periodsuch as a data and time to be reproduced, and so on.

[0101] Subsequently, the CPU 90 a encrypts the {Kc//AC1//AC2//licenseID//content ID}Km(1) by the symmetric key (Ks2) peculiar to the sessionusing the RAM 90 b in a step S81. That is, {{Kc//AC1//AC2//licenseID//content ID}Km(1)}Ks2 is outputted. Then, the {{Kc//AC1//AC2//licenseID//content ID}Km(1)}Ks2 is transmitted in a step S83.

[0102] Therefore, the controller 36 receives the {{Kc//AC1//AC2//licenseID//content ID}Km(1)}Ks2 in a step S85, which is later applied to thecontroller 70 in the memory card 58. In response thereto, the controller70 decrypts the {{Kc//AC1//AC2//license ID//content ID}Km(1)}Ks2 by thesymmetric key (Ks2) in a step S87 shown in FIG. 11. Therefore,{Kc//AC1//AC2//license ID//content ID}Km(1) is outputted. Subsequently,the controller 70 decrypts the {Kc//AC1//AC2//license ID//contentID}Km(1) by the decryption key (Km(1)) peculiar to the memory card 58stored in the key memory 78, which is transformed into a plain text in astep S89. Therefore, the content decryption key (Kc), the limitinformation (AC1), the control information (AC2), the license ID, andthe content ID are obtained. Subsequently, the controller 70 stores thecontent decryption key (Kc), the limit information (AC1), the controlinformation (AC2), the license ID, and the content ID into the licensememory 76 via the bus 72 in a step S91.

[0103] When the content decryption key (Kc), the limit information(AC1), the control information (AC2), the license ID, and the content IDare stored into the license memory 76, the controller 36 transmits thetransaction ID and the data transmission request obtained in advance (inthe step S59) in a step S93. In response thereto, the CPU 90 a obtainsfrom the HDD 94 the music data, that is, {Data}Kc which encrypted thecontent data (Data) to be decryptable by the content decryption key (Kc)and additional information (Data-inf) of the content data (Data). It isnoted that the additional information (Data-inf) includes plain textinformation such as corresponding content data in association with itswork, or in association with the server access, the title name, lyrics,an album jacket, and so on. In a succeeding step S97, the CPU 90 atransmits {Data}Kc//Data-inf.

[0104] Therefore, the controller 36 receives the {Data}Kc//Data-inf in astep S99, which is applied to the controller 70 in the memory card S58later. The controller 70 accepts the {Data}Kc//Data-inf in a step S101,and stores the encrypted content data {Data}Kc and the additionalinformation (Data-inf) into the memory 74.

[0105] Upon completion of storing the encrypted content data {Data}Kcand the additional information (Data-inf), the controller 36 transmitsthe transaction ID and a data acceptance in a step S103, and cuts-offthe line later. Therefore, the CPU 90 a receives the transaction ID andthe data acceptance in a step S105, and ends the process.

[0106] Thus, the mobile telephone 12 accesses the download server 24 inaccordance with the download information obtained from the menu server22, and can download content data (music data), its additionalinformation and necessary information (license information) for areproduction such as the encrypted the decryption key. Therefore, theencrypted music data, its additional information, and the licenseinformation are stored in the memory card 58.

[0107] It is noted that although in this embodiment the encrypted musicdata and the license information are downloaded from the downloadserver, at least the license information may be downloaded from thedownload server. That is, the encrypted music data may be obtained fromanother deliver server, and also be obtained from an appendix of amagazine, such as a CD or the like.

[0108] In addition, the downloaded music data can be reproduced usingthe mobile telephone 12. The music data reproduced in the reproductioncircuit 46 is output via the headphone 24 connected to the outputterminal 60. It is noted that a reproduction process is also disclosedin detail in prior-filed Japanese Patent Application No. 11-345229 bythe inventor et al.

[0109] Referring to FIG. 12, the reproduction circuit 46 includes amutual authentication process circuit 46 a. The mutual authenticationprocess circuit 46 a is connected to the memory card 58 via the bus 34,and carries out a mutual authentication by exchanging a key between thememory card 58 in order to obtain the content decryption key (Kc) andthe limit information (AC2) protected by a copyright. In addition, a keymemory 46 b and a content decryption process circuit 46 c are connectedto the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a. The key memory 46 bstores a key peculiar to a class of the reproduction circuit 46 handledby the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a. In addition, thecontent decryption process circuit 46 c is connected to the memory card58 via the bus 34, and the encrypted music data ({Data}Kc) is appliedfrom the memory card 58 thereto. Furthermore, the content decryption key(Kc) obtained finally in the mutual authentication process circuit 46 ais also applied thereto. Therefore, the music data ({Data}Kc) encryptedusing the content decryption key (Kc) is decrypted (decoded into a plaintext) in the content decryption process circuit 46 c. That is, the musicdata (Data) is output as plain text information from the contentdecryption process circuit 46 c, and applied to a music reproductionprocess circuit 46 d. The music reproduction process circuit 46 dapplies a reproduction process to the music data (Data), which is outputto the terminal 60.

[0110] More specifically, the reproduction process is carried out inaccordance with a flowchart shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14. Thereproduction process is carried out by the controller 36 and thereproduction circuit 46 in the mobile telephone 12 and the controller 70in the memory card 58 as described above. Therefore, sections areprovided by a dotted line so that respective operations are easilyunderstood in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14.

[0111] Firstly, the controller 36 determines whether or not areproduction instruction is input by the user in a step S111. If “NO” isdetermined in the step S111, that is, if the reproduction instruction isnot input, the process returns to the same step S111. On the other hand,if “YES” is determined in the step S111, that is, the reproductioninstruction is input, the controller reads out the certified publicencryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma) stored in the key memory 46 b in a stepS113, which is then output.

[0112] Therefore, the controller 70 receives the certified publicencryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma), and decrypts the certified publicencryption key ({KPmc(1)}KPma) by the authentication key (KPma) in astep S115. In a succeeding step S117, the controller 70 determineswhether or not the public encryption key (KPp) peculiar to the class ofthe reproduction circuit 46 is valid as a result of the decrypting inthe step S115. If “NO” is determined in the step S117, that is, if thepublic encryption key (KPp) is invalid, the process is directly ended asshown in FIG. 14. On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the stepS117, that is, if the public encryption key (KPp) is valid, thecontroller 70 generates a symmetric key (Ks3) peculiar to the session ina step S119, and encrypts to be decryptable by a private decryption key(Kp) which is asymmetric to the public encryption key (KPp) stored inthe key memory 46b and in pair. That is, {Ks3}Kp is outputted. Then, thecontroller 70 outputs the {Ks3}Kp in a step S121.

[0113] Next, the controller 36 receives the {Ks3}Kp in a step S123,which is input into the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a.Then, the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a decrypts (decryptsinto a plain text) the {Ks3}Kp by the private decryption key (Kp) heldin the key memory 46 b. In a succeeding step S125, a symmetric key (Ks4)peculiar to the session is generated, and the symmetric key (Ks4) isencrypted by the symmetric key (Ks3). That is, {Ks4}Ks3 is outputted.Subsequently, the {Ks4}Ks3 is output to the memory card 58 in a stepS127.

[0114] Upon receipt of the {Ks4}Ks3, the controller 70 decrypts (decodesinto a plain text) by the symmetric key (Ks3) in a step S129. Therefore,the symmetric key (Ks4) is obtained. In a succeeding step S131, thecontroller 70 determines whether or not reproducible based on the limitinformation (AC1). If “YES” is determined in the step S131, that is, ifa reading of the content decryption key (Kc) is not permitted oralthough the reading of the content decryption key (Kc) is permitted,the number of times limit information is “00”, the process is ended asshown in FIG. 14 assuming that it is not reproducible. On the otherhand, if “NO” is determined in the step S131, that is, if the reading ofthe content decryption key (Kc) is permitted and the number of timeslimit information is other than “00”, it is determined whether or notthe number of reproduction times has a limit thereon in a step S133.

[0115] If “NO” is determined in the step S133, that is, if the number oftimes limit information is “FF” and the number of reproduction times isnot limited, the process directly proceeds to a step S137 shown in FIG.14. On the other hand, if “YES” is determined in the step S133, that is,if the number of times limit information is “1”-“FE”, the processproceeds to the step S137 after updating (count down) the number oftimes limit information within the license memory 76 in a step S135.

[0116] In the step S137 shown in FIG. 14, the controller 70 obtains thecontent decryption key (Kc) within the license memory 76 and the limitinformation (AC2) of the reproduction circuit, and encrypts the contentdecryption key (Kc) and the limit information (AC2) of the reproductioncircuit by the symmetric key (Ks4) peculiar to the session obtained inadvance in a succeeding step S139. Therefore, {Kc//AC2}Ks4 is outputted.Next, the controller 70 outputs the {Kc//AC2}Ks4 in a step S141.

[0117] Therefore, the controller 36 obtains the {Kc//AC2}Ks4 in a stepS143, and inputs into the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a.Then, the mutual authentication process circuit 46 a decrypts (decryptsinto a plain text) the {Kc//AC2}Ks4 by the symmetric key (Ks4) inaccordance with an instruction of the controller 36. The contentdecryption key (Kc) obtained to be decrypted in this manner is appliedto the content decryption process circuit 46 c, and the limitinformation (AC2) is applied to the controller 36. Subsequently, thecontroller 36 determines whether or not reproducible based on the limitinformation (AC2) in a step S145. That is, it is determined whether ornot a period capable of reproducing is elapsed in the reproductioncircuit 46 based on time information applied from the timer 42. If “YES”is determined in the step S145, that is, if the period capable ofreproducing is elapsed, the process is directly ended. On the otherhand, if “NO” is determined in the step S145, that is, if within theperiod capable of reproducing, the encrypted music data {Data}Kc isrequested to output in the step S147. In response thereto, thecontroller 70 within the memory card 58 obtains the {Data}Kc within thememory 74 in a step S149, which is then output.

[0118] In response thereto, the controller 36 inputs the encrypted musicdata {Data}Kc into a contents decryption process circuit 46 c in thestep S151. The contents decryption process circuit 46 c decrypts(decodes into a plain text) the encrypted music data {Data}Kc by thecontent decryption key (Kc), and the music data (Data) is applied to thereproduction process circuit 46 d within the reproduction circuit 46 ina step S153. Then, the process ends by reproducing the music data(Data).

[0119] Thus, the obtained music data is to be reproduced.

[0120] According to this embodiment, the mobile telephone obtains anaccess point where a traffic is not congested, and accesses the downloadserver from that access point so that it is possible to download desiredmusic data by averting the traffic congestion without an unnecessary oradditional operation. This allows to prevent a telephone communicationtime from being prolonged due to the traffic congestion, thus enablingto restrain a telephone charge.

[0121] In addition, although one download server is shown to beconnected with regard to a plurality of access points DAP(1)˜DAP(p),even if there are a plurality of download servers, it is possible tocarry out the similar process if the download servers are assigned to becorresponding to the respective access points.

[0122] Furthermore, in a case that a plurality of access points and aplurality of download servers are flexibly connected with each other viathe Internet, it is still possible to carry out the similar process if,assuming that a combination of the access points and the downloadservers is one quasi-access point, the connection information to thequasi-access point is rendered a telephone number for connecting to anactual access point and a URL for specifying the download server.

[0123] A download system 10 of another embodiment shown in FIG. 15 isthe same as the above-described embodiment except that the deliveryserver 18 is provided with two or more download servers. Therefore,duplicated descriptions are omitted.

[0124] It is noted that for the convenience to illustrate in Figure, themobile telephone 12, the radio base station 14, and the mobile telephonenetwork 16 are omitted in FIG. 15. In addition, the download server 24 ais connected to the Internet 20, and has access points DAP(1)-DAP(p).Although not shown, similar to the download server 24 a, other downloadservers 24 b-24 xx are connected to the Internet 20, respectively.Furthermore, the other download servers 24 b-24 xx have at least twoaccess points (not shown), respectively.

[0125] In such the download system 10, the download servers 24 b-24 xxare provided in such a manner as to cover previously determined zones orareas (prefecture, for example), respectively. In addition, all thedownload servers 24 b-24 xx are respectively connected to the menuserver 22 and the authentication server 26.

[0126] Therefore, when the menu server 22, that is, the CPU 80 a isaccessed by the mobile telephone 12, the mobile telephone 12 detects aninstallation location of the radio base station 14 in use, that is,specifies a calling location of the mobile telephone 12 so as to selectthe download server that covers the calling location. If the downloadserver 24 a is selected, for example, an access condition of therespective access points DAP(1)-DAP(p) of the selected download server24a is detected so as to determine the access point DAP(p) where thetraffic is not congested. It is noted that the same is also true whenthe other download servers 24 b-24 xx are selected.

[0127] Since a specific download process is approximately also same asthe above-described embodiment, duplicated descriptions are omitted. Inthis download system 10, since a plurality of download servers 24 areprovided as described above, a step S27 that selects one of the downloadservers 24 a-24 xx in accordance with the calling location of the mobiletelephone 12 is provided between the step S26 and the step S28 shown inFIG. 7. In addition, in the step S28, the content ID showing the musicdata selected in accordance with a music selection result or the likeand a candidate list of access points capable of connecting to thedownload server selected in the step S27 are obtained from the HDD 84,and also a license request information AC that encrypted the receivedpurchase condition is generated. In the succeeding steps 29, one accesspoint where a traffic is not congested may be determined from thecandidate list of the access points obtained from the HDD 84 in the stepS28 so as to obtain the connection information from the HDD 84.

[0128] According to this embodiment, download servers are respectivelyprovided in different regions or areas, and the download server closerto the calling location of the mobile telephone is selected, thuspossible to access an access point with a relatively short distance. Inaddition, since the access point where a traffic is not congested isselected as in the embodiment in FIG. 1, a required time for downloadingis not prolonged more than necessary. That is, a telephone charge willnot become costly.

[0129] Furthermore, although in the above-described embodiment, it isdescribed that a plurality of download servers cover previouslydetermined regions or areas, it may be possible to cover content data bycontent data (music data). In this case, one download server may beselected by the music data selected in the step S27 described to besupplemented to FIG. 7.

[0130] In addition, the same is still true in a case that a plurality ofdownload servers are provided depending on the content data to becovered and the areas to be covered, respectively.

[0131] It is noted that in these embodiments, although only the musicdata is shown as content data, it is needless to say that content datasuch as image data or the like protected by a copyright can also be putinto application. However, in a case of the image data, the image isshown on a display of the mobile telephone when an instruction ofreproduction is input after downloading.

[0132] Moreover, in these embodiments, in a case of encrypting anddecrypting the data in each of the memory card, the download server, andthe menu server, the corresponding controller or the CPU are to carryout a process. However, since it requires a vast amount of processes toencrypt/decrypt, an exclusive circuit may be provided.

[0133] Furthermore, although in these embodiments, the music data isdownloaded into the memory card via the mobile telephone 12, anexclusive device for reproduction or downloading having no communicationfunction with another mobile telephone may be used.

[0134] Still furthermore, although in these embodiments, a case that aone company (data delivery agent) has a business contract with respectto the menu server is described, a plurality of data delivery agents mayhave the contract. Therefore, in a case that respective data deliveryagents have one download server as in the FIG. 1 embodiment, the menuserver determines the data delivery agent that holds (sales) theselected music data, and an access point of the download serverdetermined based on a traffic condition and owned by the data deliveryagent may be determined.

[0135] In addition, in a case that the respective data delivery agentshave a plurality of download servers as in the FIG. 15 embodiment,firstly, the menu server determines the data delivery agent that holds(sales) the selected music data. Secondly, a calling location of themobile telephone is specified so as to select the download server havingthe shortest telephone communication distance. Then, an access point ofthe download server selected based on the traffic condition isdetermined.

[0136] Furthermore, even in a case that the data delivery agent having aplurality of the download servers and the data delivery agent having onedownload server are sporadically present and the respective datadelivery agents have the contract with the menu server, it is possibleto determine the access point using one of any methods described abovedepending on the data delivery agent.

[0137] Still furthermore, although in these embodiments, the music datais downloaded by the mobile telephone, a computer such as a personalcomputer, a workstation, and so on may download the music data. In thiscase, the computer is connected to the delivery server via a publictelephone network. It is noted that in a case of a note book personalcomputer, it is considered to connect to the delivery server via amobile telephone network using a mobile telephone only having aconventional communication function (and electrical mail function).

[0138] In addition, although in these embodiments, the content data isdownloaded using the mobile telephone, it may be also possible todownload using a PHS. In this case, the PHS is connected to the deliveryserver via a radio base station and a PHS network.

[0139] Although the present invention has been described and illustratedin detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way ofillustration and example only and is not to be taken by way oflimitation, the spirit and scope of the present invention being limitedonly by the terms of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A data delivery server, comprising: a downloadserver which transmits content data to a communication terminal via atelephone network; at least two access points for accessing saiddownload server; a connection situation detecting means which detects aconnection situation of said access points; and a first selecting meanswhich selects one access point where traffic is not congested based on adetection result by said connection situation detecting means.
 2. A datadelivery server according to claim 1, further comprising a holding meanswhich holds a candidate of access points determined in accordance with acalling location of said communication terminal, a calling locationdetecting means which detects a location of said communication terminal,and a second selecting means which selects a candidate of at least twoaccess points in accordance with said calling location detected by saidcalling location detecting means, wherein said first selecting meansselects said one access point from a candidate of said access pointsselected by said second selecting means.
 3. A data delivery serveraccording to claim 2, further comprising at least two download servers,and a third selecting means which selects said one download server fromsaid at least two download servers, wherein said holding meansrespectively holds a candidate of at least two access pointsrespectively corresponding to said at least two download servers and foraccessing to said download server.
 4. A data delivery server accordingto claim 3, wherein at least two download servers are respectivelyprovided in different regions, and said third selecting means selectssaid one download server based on said calling location detected by saidcalling location detecting means.
 5. A data delivery server according toclaim 3, wherein said at least two download servers are provided to becorresponding to different content data, and said third selecting meansselects said one download server based on said content data to betransmitted to said communication terminal.
 6. A data delivery server,comprising; a download server which transmits to a communicationterminal via a telephone network at least one of encrypted content dataand license information necessary for reproducing said encrypted contentdata; at least two access points for accessing to said download server;a connection situation detecting means which detects connectionsituations to said access point; and a first selecting means whichselects said one access point where a traffic is not congested based ona detection result of said connection situation detecting means.
 7. Adata delivery server according to claim 6, further comprising a holdingmeans which holds a candidate of access points determined in accordancewith a calling location of said communication terminal, a callinglocation detecting means which detects a location of said communicationterminal, and a second selecting means which selects a candidate of saidat least two access points in accordance with said calling locationdetected by said calling location detecting means, wherein said firstselecting means selects said one access point from a candidate of saidaccess points selected by said second selecting means.
 8. A datadelivery server according to claim 7, further comprising at least twodownload servers, and a third selecting means which selects said onedownload server from said at least two download servers, wherein saidholding means respectively holds a candidate of at least two accesspoints respectively corresponding to said at least two download serversand for accessing to said download server.
 9. A data delivery serveraccording to claim 8, wherein at least two download servers arerespectively provided in different regions, and said third selectingmeans selects said one download server based on said calling locationdetected by said calling location detecting means.
 10. A data deliveryserver according to claim 8, wherein said at least two download serversare provided to be corresponding to different content data, and saidthird selecting means selects said one download server based on saidcontent data to be transmitted to said communication terminal.
 11. Acommunication terminal which connects to a download server included in adata delivery server so as to receive and store content data,comprising: an obtaining means which obtains from said data deliveryserver download information including at least data information showingsaid content to be downloaded and access point information showing anaccess point to said download server; an establishing means whichestablishes a connection between said download server based on saidaccess point information included in said download information which isobtained by said obtaining means; a transmitting means which transmitsto said download server said data information included in said downloadinformation when connected to said download server; and a storing meanswhich stores said content data transmitted from said download server.12. A communication terminal which connects to any one of a plurality ofdownload servers included in a data delivery server so as to receive andstore content data, comprising: an obtaining means which obtainsdownload information including data information showing at least saidcontent data to be downloaded and access point information showing anaccess point to said one download server selected by said data deliveryserver; an establishing means which establishes a connection betweensaid one download server based on said access point information includedin said download information obtained by said obtaining means; atransmission means which transmit to said one download server said datainformation included in said download information when connected to saidone download server; and a storing means which stores said content datatransmitted from said download server.
 13. A communication terminalwhich connects to a download server included in a data delivery serverso as to receive content data and store said content data into aconnected recording medium, comprising: an obtaining means which obtainsfrom said data delivery server download information including datainformation showing at least said content data to be downloaded andaccess point information showing an access point to said downloadserver; an establishing means which establishes a connection betweensaid download server based on said access point information included insaid download information obtained by said obtaining means; atransmission means which transmit to said download server said datainformation included in said download information when connected to saiddownload server; a connecting means which connects to said recordingmedium so as to transmit and receive at least said content data; and astoring control means which stores said content data transmitted fromsaid download server to said recording medium connected by saidconnecting means.
 14. A communication terminal which connects to any oneof a plurality of download servers included in a data delivery server soas to receive content data and store said content data into a connectedrecording medium, comprising: an obtaining means which obtains downloadinformation including data information showing at least said contentdata to be downloaded and access point information showing an accesspoint to said one download server selected by said data delivery server;an establishing means which establishes a connection between said onedownload server based on said access point information included in saiddownload information obtained by said obtaining means; a transmissionmeans which transmit to said one download server said data informationincluded in said download information when connected to said onedownload server; and a connecting means which connects to said recordingmedium so as to transmit and receive at least said content data; and astoring control means which stores said content data transmitted fromsaid one download server to said recording medium connected by saidconnecting means.
 15. A data delivery system, comprising: a datadelivery server including a download server; and a communicationterminal provided with a storing means which stores content datatransmitted from said download server; wherein said data delivery serverincludes at least two access points for accessing to said downloadserver, a connection situation detecting means which detects connectionsituations of said access point, and a first selecting means whichselects said one access point where a traffic is not congested based ona detection result of said connection situation detecting means.
 16. Adata delivery system according to claim 15, wherein said data deliveryserver further includes a holding means which holds a candidate ofaccess points determined in accordance with a calling location of saidcommunication terminal, a calling location detecting means which detectsthe location of said communication terminal, and a second selectingmeans which selects a candidate of at least two access points inaccordance with said calling location detected by said calling locationdetecting means, said first selecting means selects said one accesspoint from a candidate of said access points selected by said secondselecting means.
 17. A data delivery system according to claim 16,wherein said data delivery server further includes at least two downloadservers, and a third selecting means which selects said one downloadserver from said at least two download servers, said holding meansrespectively holds a candidate of at least two access pointsrespectively corresponding to at least more than said one downloadservers and for accessing to said download server.
 18. A data deliverysystem according to claim 17, wherein said more than one downloadservers are provided in different regions, respectively, and said thirdselecting means selects said one download server based on said callinglocation detected by said calling location detecting means.
 19. A datadelivery system according to claim 17, wherein said more than onedownload servers are provided to be corresponding to different contentdata, and said third selecting means selects said one download serverbased on said content data transmitted to said communication terminal.20. A data delivery system, comprising: a data delivery server includinga download server; and a communication terminal provided with a storingmeans which stores encrypted content data and license informationtransmitted from said download server; wherein said data delivery serverincludes at least two access points for accessing to said downloadserver, a connection situation detecting means which detects aconnection situation of said access point, and a first selecting meanswhich selects said one access point where a traffic is not congestedbased on a detection result of said connection situation detectingmeans.
 21. A data delivery system according to claim 20, wherein saiddata delivery server further includes a holding means which holds acandidate of access points determined in accordance with a callinglocation of said communication terminal, a calling location detectingmeans which detects the location of said communication terminal, and asecond selecting means which selects a candidate of at least two accesspoints in accordance with said calling location detected by said callinglocation detecting means, said first selecting means selects said oneaccess point from a candidate of said access points selected by saidsecond selecting means.
 22. A data delivery system according to claim21, wherein said data delivery server further includes at least twodownload servers, and a third selecting means which selects said onedownload server from said at least two download servers, said holdingmeans respectively holds a candidate of at least two access pointsrespectively corresponding to said at least two download servers and foraccessing to said download server.
 23. A data delivery system accordingto claim 22, wherein said more than one download servers arerespectively provided to be corresponding to different content data, andsaid third selecting means selects said one download server based onsaid calling location detected by said calling location detecting means.24. A data delivery system according to claim 22, wherein said more thanone download servers are provided to be corresponding to differentcontent data, and said third selecting means selects said one downloadserver based on said content data transmitted to said communicationterminal.